Two men had charges of Grievous Bodily Harm upgraded to murder in the Gympie Magistrate Court on Monday 20 November.
Cody James Shaw, 21, and Brandon Steven Charles Whaite, 24, both from Gympie, are alleged to have assaulted a 41-year-old Lagoon Pocket man outside licensed premises around 2am on Sunday 19 November.
Members of the public rendered first aid to the man in Mary Street after it is alleged he was punched and fell, hitting his head on the roadway.
The 41-year-old man was flown to the Sunshine Coast University Hospital in a critical condition but passed away from his injuries on Monday 20 November.
Whaite was arrested in a Horseshoe Bend home following the incident and Shaw was arrested over subsequent days, the court was told.
Both men have been remanded in custody and are due to appear before the court by video for mention on Monday 15 January next year.
Both men did not appear in the court either by person, video or phone and their absence was excused.
No pleas were made to the court nor were any applications for bail made.
A member of the defendants’ family asked duty lawyer Chris Anderson if a non-publication order could be made but it was ultimately deemed by Magistrate Bevan Hughes that there were no provisions for such an order and that matters must be heard in an open court.
